toppie, noun1

/ˈtɒpi/
Origin:
EnglishShow more Formed on top-knot + English (informal) noun-forming suffix -ie; see quotation 1937.
Either of two species of bulbul of the Pycnonotidae with black or dark brown heads and crests, Pycnonotus capensis and P. barbatus; top-knot; also called tiptol. See also blackhead sense 1 a.
Note:
In G.L. Maclean’s Roberts’ Birds of Sn Afr. (1993), the name ‘Cape bulbul’ is used for P. capensis, and ‘blackeyed bulbul’ for P. barbatus.
1899 G. Russell Hist. of Old Durban 176Doves cooed, and ‘Toppies’ answered each other obtrusively.
1936 E.L. Gill First Guide to S. Afr. Birds 71Toppie, blackcap bulbul, layard’s bulbul; Pycnonotus tricolor layardi...The Toppie is the one with the widest range, from the Eastern Cape Province through Natal and the Transvaal to Rhodesia and Nyasaland.
1937 M. Alston Wanderings 97The black-capped bulbuls, known familiarly as ‘toppies’ or ‘tiptols’ or ‘top-knots’ because of their black-crested heads.
1940 A. Roberts Birds of S. Afr. 225Cape Bulbul, or Toppie..is not such a common bird as the Layard’s Bulbul found further east, but has the same lively manner and habit of whistling...It feeds on berries and fruit.
1953 J.M. Winterbottom Common Birds of S.-E. 22The Scrub Bulbul is..about the same size as the Toppie (Pycnonotus barbatus).
1964 D. Varaday Gara-Yaka 126His best friends became the Toppies, the conical-helmeted small dark birds that disclose the presence of snakes.
1972 Palmer & Pitman Trees of Sn Afr. II. 1401These fruits..are..eaten by many species of birds such as Green Pigeons, toppies, barbets and guineafowl.
1981 P. Ginn Birds Afield 89The bulbuls fall naturally into two groups: the toppies, with their black heads and yellow vents, and the forest or bush species which are generally a greenish or yellowish colour.
1989 M. Ginn in Rhodos (Rhodes Univ.) Nov. 5The odd false alarm caused by our resident Cape Robin and the ubiquitous and vaguely similar ‘Toppie’.
Either of two species of bulbul of the Pycnonotidae with black or dark brown heads and crests, Pycnonotus capensis and P. barbatus; top-knot; also called tiptol.
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top-knot, nounn.toppie, nounn.2
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